The Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase is behind us. Microsoft’s annual conference unveiled around thirty games with very different genres and ambitions that will be released until June 2023. Excellent news for the brand’s players in between starfield, redfall or Forza Motorsport, will have fun. The only downer is that if the release schedule for the first half of 2023 already seems particularly busy, the manufacturer will not be releasing any major first-party games until the end of the year Buses. A lack of flagship releases that bespeaks one certainty: Xbox is still in a transition phase. But fortunately, the beginning of a new era seems very close.
Noticeable absences
After the Xbox 2022 conference, an allegation was very widespread. In addition to the lack of major releases at the end of the year, many fans are wondering where les Fables, Perfect Dark, Confessed and other Indiana Jones or Everwild. Especially awaited games, some of whose announcements date back to 2018, years of absence in which we had almost no information or gameplay images. And on a video game scale, two, three, four years is a long time. Very long.
So how can these absences be explained? A first element of resonance can be found in the conference itself the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase 2022, Phil Spencer and his teams have decided to focus on releases over the next twelve months. One ambition endured, however, with one exception named Kojima. But that’s just a detail, because of the 95 minutes of the video, almost all of the speaking time was taken up by games that will be released within a year.
With this postulate, it is then clear that the big giants of the Xbox are de facto excluded. Fable, Perfect Dark, Project Mara, Hellblade II…all will be released after June 2023 and therefore it was not the time nor the place to delve into these forthcoming productions. So you’re going to ask me, why did you talk about this so early? Why focus on the next 12 months today when these titles with immense potential have been announced for years? Well, I’ll come back to this: because Xbox is in transition.
preparation for the future
In 2018, Game Pass will become Microsoft’s main development axis. A big change of strategy for the company that wants to develop thanks to its service and not just the hardware. A game-on-demand subscription service that can only be profitable under two conditions: achieve sustained growth in the number of subscribers and ensure sufficient retention to guarantee significant and recurring revenue. And to generate customer loyalty, to keep subscribers long-term, you need content. Rich, varied and regular content.
To achieve this, Microsoft has therefore chosen the path of rapid growth. With colossal means, the company has significantly increased its production capacity to comfortably deliver its Game Pass and multiplied its workforce. Some studios were able to set up new teams (Mojang, The Coalition), new structures were created (The Initiative, World’s Edge) and a large number of studios were acquired. Six in 2018. One in 2019. And eight in 2021 with the acquisition of Zenimax Media.
With a total of 23 internal studios, Microsoft is now in the best possible position to water the market with its own productions. Especially since with the announced takeover of Activision Blizzard King, 33 studios will be created for the American company in the future. Colossal.
Apart from that, it takes time to produce new games. Almost all studios have recently released projects and, for some, in addition to the production of new titles, there are acquisitions, staff increases, the new funds made available, relocations and relocations to be cashed in… all this in the middle of the Covid story to add a layer.
A transition coming out of the studios
To be more specific, you have to consider that Compulsion Games was released We Happy Few in 2018, which inXile launched Wasteland III in 2019 and that Obsidian was offered to the public The Outer Worlds the same year. ForzaHorizon 4 was released in 2018 and Playground created a new studio from scratch to develop it fable. Ninja Theory completes development of Top News in 2020, while Turn 10 is immensely involved in the architecture of the Xbox series alongside the reboot of Forza Motorsport.
And on the Bethesda side, it’s not much better. Bethesda is working on it starfield for years and id software just released eternal doom in 2020. Future projects include Arkane, which is being worked on death loop and Tango Gameworks Ghostwire Tokyo. However, deals signed with Playstation deprive Microsoft of exclusive releases and minimize the offer for Game Pass subscribers, at least for a time.
In short, more than Microsoft, all studios are in a full transition to ensure the end of development before starting new projects. And Phil Spencer and his teams know that very well. With a few exceptions, you are facing a lull. Like the retreating sea before a tsunami is announced. And we have to deal with it.
Nice promises and a good dose of patience
Between 2018 and 2020, Xbox therefore pursued a communication strategy based on the presentation of projects with an outrageous number, but whose developments are still in their infancy. Yes, between 2018 and 2020, Xbox doesn’t have much more to offer gamers than it promises.
The company promises great games in the future. Productions with substantial budgets, with all the creative freedom it takes to surprise us and guarantee outstanding work. Xbox promises to provide Game Pass with outstanding titles every quarter. When ? We don’t know, but the essential isn’t there. You must communicate, you must explain, you must teach and occupy the field until the studios acquired or created are operational.
This is of course how games are made. Forza Horizon 5, Flight Simulator, Halo Infinite or Age of Empires IV captivate the public. Even to the point of making Xbox the best publisher of 2021. But it’s a bit like the tree that hides the forest. Especially since the exits from Wasteland III, We Happy Few, The Outer Worlds or psychonauts 2 are carried out on almost all platforms. This reduces Microsoft’s influence over its exclusive catalog and skews the public’s perception of the amount of titles Xbox Game Studios has released recently.
The beginnings of a new era
Fortunately, several projects are in the final stages of development. The Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase and its change of perspective also witness. By deciding to only quit in the next 12 months, Xbox is changing the way it communicates to align with its schedule that promises to be richer than ever. This transition period is slowly coming to an end and now that we are hearing about it fable, Hellblade II or Always wild This is because these titles are about to be released.
And that will also be the case with the next surprises from Xbox Game Studios. forced games (We happy couple)ID software (Eternal Destiny)machine games (Wolfstone)The coalition (Transmission) or Encore Zenimax Online (TESO) all have projects in development for several years that need to be presented publicly. And if they do, we’ll only have to wait a few months to find out. In the way of Buses Or from Minecraft Legends Next to.
Yes, Xbox is definitely almost complete its transition period. The new era that is beginning should be synonymous with near-continuous play with regularly available experiences in Xbox Game Pass. A transformation that will definitely end in 2023 and that will probably culminate in the final takeover of Activision Blizzard.
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